Dances of Rumania
The charm of the folk dances of Rumania derives, to a large extent, from many strange and ancient peasant customs, including shades of 'bacchic frenzy', and the still practised initiation ordeals connected with the ritual Calusari dance. Superstition and magic are evidence of the supposed presence of fairies in this amazing dancing rite; and there seems to have been a curious custom in which a group of young men sold themselves to the devil and started out from their native village, literally dancing their way through the country.The four typical dances chosen for presentation in detail, complete with music and step-notation, are the nation-wide Hora, the gay Invartita, the energetic and popular Sarba, and the dignified Banul Maracine. Their traditional tunes appear here in admirable piano arrangements by Arnold Foster, and four delightful colour plates show authentic peasant costumes.Miron Grindea, editor of the literary monthly Adam published in London in the English and French languages, was also known as a music critic and broadcaster, and as the founder of the International Arts Guild. Carola Grindea, a pupil of Constanta Erbiceanu and Tobias Matthay, gave many piano recitals of Balkan music.
In Search of Legitimacy
Unique in proposing a model for how individuals engaged in a particular body-culture use travel as a way of signaling their commitment to the genre. The approach in describing how non-Brazilians position themselves to claim legitimacy within the field of capoeira on Brazilians' 'home turf' is a unique perspective. This is the first anthropological monograph based on participant-observation of capoeira that is written by a woman.
The Designs of Leon Bakst for The Sleeping Princess
When Serge Diaghilev decided to produce for his 1921London season a revival of Petipa's 'Sleeping Beauty', heturned to the great Russian designer L矇on Bakst to providethe scenery and costumes. In the incredibly short time ofjust six weeks Bakst produced several hundred costumedesigns and scenery for all four acts. To avoid confusionwith English pantomimes, Diaghilev changed the name ofthe ballet to 'The Sleeping Princess'.Although the production was a financial failure it was agreat artistic success, due in a large part to Bakst's designs, and this success led to the production of this book, firstpublished in 1923 in a limited edition of one thousandcopies, and never before reprinted with the illustrationsin full colour. The original editors chose to reproduce 54of Bakst's designs, mainly of costumes for the principalcharacters but including five set designs, all of which areincluded here.
Kinaesthesia and Visual Self-Reflection in Contemporary Dance
Kinaesthesia and Visual Self-reflection in Contemporary Dance features interviews with UK-based professional-level contemporary, ballet, hip hop, and breaking dancers and cross-disciplinary explication of kinaesthesia and visual self-reflection discourses. Expanding on the concept of a 'kinaesthetic mode of attention' leads to discussion of some of the key values and practices which nurture and develop this mode in contemporary dance. Zooming in on entanglements with video self-images in dance practice provides further insights regarding kinaesthesia's historicised polarisation with the visual. It thus provides opportunities to dwell on and reconsider reflections, opening up to a set of playful yet disruptive diffractions inherent in the process of becoming a contemporary dancer, particularly amongst an increasingly complex landscape of visual and theoretical technologies.
Russian Ballet in Caricatures
In the early years of the twentieth century, two dancers at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburgh, the brothers Nikolai and Sergei Legat, produced a series of (mostly) affectionate caricatures of their fellow artists. The caricatures were initially printed individually, but later collected in folders containing varied numbers of the prints, the maximum number recorded being 94.All 94 of these prints, taken from a rare surviving complete set, are reproduced here in full colour. They include some of the great names of the day, including Cecchetti, Drigo, Gerdt, Ivanov, Karsavina, Kyasht, the Legat brothers themselves, Pavlova, Petipa, Trefilova, and many others, forming a fascinating glimpse of life at the Mariinsky at that time.
Teaching the Beauty of a Tap Melody
"Teaching the Beauty of a Tap Melody" is meant to be helpful for teaching tap dance on every level. There are reflections on every aspect concerning tap classes, as well as practical instructions, exercises and several short choreographies.
Ubuntu as Dance Pedagogy in Uganda
This book locates the philosophy of Ubuntu as the undergirding framework for indigenous dance pedagogies in local communities in Uganda. Through critical examination of the reflections and practices of selected local dance teachers, the volume reveals how issues of inclusion, belonging, and agency are negotiated through a creatively complex interplay between individuality and communality. The analysis frames pedagogies as sites where reflective thought and kinaesthetic practice converge to facilitate ever-evolving individual imagination and community innovations.
The Golden Age - Ballet in Soviet Russia 1917-1991
However difficult the Soviet era was for the peoples of Russia, its seventy-four years represented a true golden age for classical ballet. It was characterised by a wholescale repurposing of the art form from being the 'golden rattle' of the tsars to the most potent cultural weapon in the Communist regime's armoury in its struggles with the West. The Golden Age presents a detailed overview of the development of ballet in Soviet Russia, from its fight for survival in the early years after the 1917 revolutions through the political demands of Stalin's rule, the shock of armed conflict with Germany and the onset of the Cold War. As the century progressed, Soviet ballet was not immune to outside influences hastened by the onset of cultural visits and exchanges; it also suffered the defection of dancers and ultimately opened up further with perestroika in the 1980s and the fall of Communist rule in 1991. Gerald Dowler sets the complex, shifting world of Russian ballet in its political and social contexts and explores the contributions of major choreographers, dancers and teachers in creating the phenomenon of what is celebrated around the world as 'Russian ballet'. Their achievements in creating the Soviet Golden Age were truly remarkable. Gerald Dowler has written about dance for over twenty years for Dancing Times, the Financial Times, Ballet 2000, Ballet Review and numerous specialist websites, and has worked extensively with the Voices of British Ballet oral archive. He read Modern History and Modern Languages at the University of Oxford. He taught for many years at the City of London School and sits as a presiding Justice of the Peace. He was the editor of Clement Crisp Reviews (2021). He lives and works in London.
Error, Ambiguity, and Creativity
Draws together essays on arts, humanities, engineering, and medicine to comment upon the creative potential of error and ambiguityFeatures scholars and practitioners from a broad range of disciplinesExplores the idea that mistakes are a fundamental route to new knowledge
Moving Through Conflict
Moving through Conflict: Dance and Politics in Israel is a pioneering project in examining the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through dance. It proposes a research framework for study of the social, cultural, aesthetic and political dynamics between Jews and Arabs as reflected in dance from late 19th-century Palestine to present-day Israel. Drawing on multiple disciplines, this book examines a variety of social and theatrical venues (communities, dance groups, evening classes and staged performances), dance genres (folk dancing, social dancing and theatrical dancing) and different cultural identities (Israeli, Palestinian and American). Underlying this work is a fundamental question: can the body and dance operate as nonverbal autonomous agents to mediate change in conflicting settings, transforming the "foreign" into the "familiar"? Or are they bound to their culturally dependent significance - and thus nothing more than additional sites of an embodied politics? This anthology expounds on various studies on dance, historical periods, points of view and points of contact that help promote thinking about this fundamental issue. It will be of great interest to students and scholars of dance studies, sociology, anthropology, art history, education and cultural studies, as well as conflict and resolution studies.
The Routledge Companion to Dance Studies
The Routledge Companion to Dance Studies maps out the key features of dance studies as the field stands today, while pointing to potential future developments.It locates these features both historically-within dance in particular social and cultural contexts-and in relation to other academic influences that have impinged on dance studies as a discipline. The editors use a thematically based approach that emphasizes that dance scholarship does not stand alone as a single entity, but is inevitably linked to other related fields, debates, and concerns. Authors from across continents have contributed chapters based on theoretical, methodological, ethnographic, and practice-based case studies, bringing together a wealth of expertise and insight to offer a study that is in-depth and wide-ranging. Ideal for scholars and upper-level students of dance and performance studies, The Routledge Companion to Dance Studies challenges the reader to expand their knowledge of this vibrant, exciting interdisciplinary field.
Pina Bausch’s Aggressive Tenderness
Pina Bausch's Aggressive Tenderness: Repurposing Theater through Dance maps Bausch's pieces alongside methodologies of key theater and film practitioners.This book includes discussion of a variety of Bausch pieces, including Sacre du Printemps (Rite of Spring 1975), Kontakthof (Meeting Place 1978), Caf矇 M羹ller (Caf矇 Mueller 1978), Nelken (Carnations 1982), Arien (Arias 1985), and Vollmond (Full Moon 2006). Beginning with her approach as one avenue of dance dramaturgy, the author connects the content expressed in these pieces with theoretical conversations, works from other artists inspired by Bausch, and her own experiences, providing an examination that is both academic and personally insightful. Arendell reads all of these theatrical and film approaches into Bausch's work to highlight how the time frame involves a cross-pollination between Bausch and the other artists that looks both backward and forward in its influences.Ideal for students of dance and theater, Pina Bausch's Aggressive Tenderness shows how Bausch's Tanztheater speaks a kinaesthetic language, one that Arendell translates into a somaesthetic exploration to pair a repurposed body ethic with movements that present new forms of embodiment.
Moving Relation
Moving Relation explores the notion of touch in the realm of contemporary dance.By closely analyzing performances by well-known European and American choreographers such as Meg Stuart, William Forsythe, Xavier Le Roy, Jared Gradinger and Angela Schubot, this book investigates their usage of touch on the level of movement, experience and affect. Building on the proposition that touch is more than the moment of bodily contact, the author demonstrates the concept of touch as an interplay of movements and multiple relations of proximity. Egert employs both depth, using close descriptions and analyses of dance performances with theoretical investigations of touch, with breadth, working across the fields of performance and dance studies, philosophy and cultural theory.Suitable for scholars and practitioners in the fields of dance and performance studies, Moving Relation uses a process-oriented notion of touch to reevaluate key concepts such as the body, rhythm, emotional expression, subjectivity and audience perception.
Essays on Classical Indian Dance
The book is a wide-ranging collection of essays on Indian classical dance, which include writings on dance appreciation, the criticism, theory and philosophy of dance, as well as some historical and light controversial articles. Also included is a seminal and unique monograph on the contribution of Sanjukta Panigrahi to the development of Odissi. The book approaches the subject from an internationalist point of view and opens up new possibilities for the appreciation of Indian dance in the context of a global intercultural critique. In addition, it is beautifully illustrated with a number of photographs captured by Arun Kumar. It will enrich and provide new ways of understanding for classical Indian dance, both for the dance community and for the general reader.
Labor and Aesthetics in European Contemporary Dance
This transdisciplinary study scientifically reports the way the established contemporary dance sector in Europe operates from a micro-perspective. It provides a dance scholarly and sociological interpretation of its mechanisms by coupling qualitative data (interview material, observations, logbooks, and dance performances) to theoretical insights. The book uncovers the sometimes contradicting mechanisms related to the precarious project-oriented labor and art market that determine the working and living conditions of contemporary dance artists in Europe's dance capitals Brussels and Berlin. In addition, it examines how these working and living conditions affect the work process and outcome. From a sociological perspective, the book engages with the relevant contemporary social issue of precarity and this within the much-at-risk professional group of contemporary dance artists. In this regard, the research brings novelty within the subject area, particularly by employinga unique methodological approach. Although the research is initially set up in a specific geographical context and within a specific research population, the book offers insights into issues that affect our neoliberal society at large. The research findings show potential to make a relevant contribution with regards to precarity within dance studies and performance studies, but also labor studies and cultural sociology.
Dances of France III. The Pyrenees
The dances of the French Pyrenees express a multitude of influences in their colourful variety. At the eastern end the French side is influenced by Spanish Catalonia, at the western end the famous Basque dances show some slight influence from their Spanish-Basque brothers; even in the centre, under the high and inaccessible peaks, dances are coloured by influence from across the frontier, so that everywhere traditions are Pyrenean rather than regional or local.Violet Alford, author of this book and editor of the series, knew the Pyrenees as few other foreigners do. She was a dancer herself, both at home and with the people whose countries she visited. Readers of her books The Traditional Dance (with Rodney Gallop) and Pyrenean Festivals, and of the many articles she wrote on folk-lore and folk dance, will recognise her lively and authoritative style. Miss Alford here selected five typical dances for fuller description, with music and step-notation. Four plates in colour show the correct costumes.
Dances of Italy
A land of wine and song, of love and laughter - the magic of Italy is reflected in the wealth of her dances, which range from the stylised Chain dances of Sardinia and the Sword dances of Piedmont to the courting mimes that belong mainly to the central and southern provinces. Among them are the delightful Monferrina with its teasings and coaxings, the lively Saltarello of central Italy, and above all the Tarantella of the south, with its exciting rhythms, miming attack and defence and final love conquest. In contrast to these warm-blooded folk dances there are the solemn processional dances of Calabria and Sicily, some of them forming part of actual religious ceremonies.Bianca Galanti, former lecturer on the history of Italian popular traditions at the University of Rome, also included in this book some notes on music and costume, and selected four dances for more detailed description, together with step-notation and music. Examples of Italy's rich heritage of traditional costume are illustrated by four plates in full colour.
Dances of Germany
Down the birch-lined roads of the Black Forest the peasant families, all in regional dress, gather for the dancing of the Schwarzwalder Bauerntanz. This and three other famous German dances are here described in detail with the music and dance steps. The gay traditional costumes are beautifully shown in four full-colour plates, and the text richly portrays the variety of dances to be found in Germany, from the cold, phlegmatic North with its figured quadrilles, to the mountainous South and its merry Alpine dances.Miss Fyfe, one-time lecturer at the Ansey College of Physical Education, travelled widely in Germany, where she learned the local dances in the Black Forest, and also joined in with the dancing villagers of North Germany.
25 Tango Lessons
Andrea discovered Argentine tango in her 20s. Over the next decades it gradually changed - and in many ways became - her life. Just about everything in tango is a microcosm of life at large, and just about everything learned on the dance floor is a life lesson as well. This book is a collection of some of the most interesting and valuable things this passionate and complex dance has taught Andrea over the years she has been practising and teaching it.
Dances of The Netherlands
Clogs and baggy trousers, wide checked skirtsand white caps - is not this our picture whenwe think of Dutch folk dances? But thiscostume belongs only to one dance and onepart of the country; even there the womenare coming to prefer 'a pleated black skirtwhich gives a slim and even elegant outline'.And who would suspect the sober Dutch ofsuch a dance as the Cramignon, a chain dancethat winds 'in and out of the houses and innsof the village' behind a brass band?Dr. Elise van der Ven-ten Bensel devotedher life to the study and preservation ofDutch folk dances. Together with herhusband, another noted folklorist, she filmedthe traditional customs of the country andorganised folk-dance schools. In this book, after a lively and amusing essay on Dutch folklife, the author describes four typical dances, with their step-notation and music, and fourcharming colour plates show the traditionalcostumes for each dance.
Dances of France II - Provence and Alsace
From sun-drenched Provence, vibrating with warmth and the whirring 'song' of cicada, come some of the gayest and historically most interesting dances in all Europe. Here are Lou Rigaudon, 'invention of the devil'; La Farandoulo, said to have originated in the Minotaur's labyrinth; and the charming Jardiniero, in which the women hold floral hoops and the men baskets of flowers. And Alsace, scene of numberless fetes and ancient fairs still produces the amusing Cock Dance.This second volume of French national dances is once again illustrated by four attractive colour plates, and contains the music and dance notations of four national dances.Nicolette Tennevin comes from a Proven癟al family and is head of 'La Couqueto', a group of dancers actively seeking to uphold their heritage of traditional songs, dances, and costumes. Marie Texier is President of the Commission de Folklore de la F矇d矇ration Regionale Fran癟aise.
Dances of Czechoslovakia
Standing at the crossroads of Europe, the bridge between east and west, Czechoslovakia combines in its folk dances and traditions the colourful wildness of the east with the more sophisticated gaiety of the west. To the lover of traditional peasant art this country has long been a treasure-house of stored delight; for those who now perforce stay at home, the author of this book has distilled the essence of a lifetime's study in a work of rare charm.The author, who was herself a dancer of some renown, takes the reader through the length and breadth of her country, from the Bohemian Forest, with its simple rhythms in a major key, to the wilder, more primitive dances of the eastern parts. After a fascinating introduction to the dances, dance-songs and folk life of this enchanting country, the author chooses four dances from different districts, and gives a detailed description of each, side-by-side with the music, which is specially arranged for easy playing. Four colour plates show the correct costumes for each dance.
The Choreopolitics of Alain Platel’s Les Ballets C de la B
Les Ballets C de la B was founded by Alain Platel in 1984. Since then it has become a company that enjoys great success at home and abroad. Over the years, Platel has developed a unique choreographic oeuvre. His motto, 'This dance is for the world and the world is for everyone', reveals a deep social and political commitment. Through the three topics of emotions, gestures and politics, this book unravels the choreopolitics of Platel's Les Ballets C de la B. His choreopolitics go beyond conveying a (political) message because rather than defending one opinion, Platel is more concerned about the exposure of the complexity within the debate itself. Highly respected scholars from different fields contribute to this book to provide an interdisciplinary perspective on the intense emotions, the damaged narratives, and the precarious bodies in Platel's choreographic oeuvre.
Dance and Cultural Difference in Aotearoa
This book provides a critical reflection on the ways dance studio teachers recognize, reflect and respond to cultural difference within their dance studio classes, particularly in the rural context in Aotearoa/New Zealand. Through dance teachers' narratives, it reveals the complexities of multiculturalism within dance studio classes and examines related issues of inclusion and exclusion within dance education.Understanding the dance practices provided by teachers like those in rural communities within Aotearoa/New Zealand is an increasingly urgent concern in an era of growing political, social and cultural tensions, for students and scholars of performing arts, leadership and community development. While previous research and publications have investigated cultural difference and global multicultural arts practices, this book presents a critical lens on performing arts practice and socio-cultural challenges experienced by local dance teachers within rural communities in Aotearoa/New Zealand.
Dances of Spain I
After five hundred years, the influence of the Moors can still be seen in Southern Spain. In the arts and crafts, in many Spanish faces the imprint of the dark invader still shows. And above all in the dance: the famous back-bends, the delicate play of finger and hand, the sudden petrified poses are more Eastern than European.This book deals with the dances of Southern, Central and North-West Spain. Mrs. Lucile Armstrong spent a large part of her life travelling the Iberian peninsula, studying the arts of the people and noting down the traditional dances. Herself a folk-dancer of great experience, she wrote in this book, in addition to a general introduction to these regions and their customs, a more detailed description of four Spanish dances: two simple, one of medium difficulty and one, the Seguidillas Sevillanas of Andalusia, which, as she said, is more subtle and needs special study. Step notations and music illustrate these dances, and in addition four plates by the author show in colour the beauty of Spanish peasant costume.
Dances of Yugoslavia
The great variety of folk dances found in Yugoslavia is the result of various factors, the peoples having lived under many different and social conditions. South and East were mainly exposed to Turkish influences, West and North to those of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, while Dalmatia and the Adriatic Islands were open to prolonged Italian influence.In this book, illustrated by four colour plates, are detailed descriptions of four typical peasant dances, with the correct dance steps and music, from four different areas: Zupcanka from Serbia, Zetsko Kolo from Montengro, Tri Mlinara from Croatia, and Laka Lisa from Macedonia.The authors, two sisters from Serbia, devoted much of their lives to collecting and analyzing folk dances from South-Eastern Europe. Between 1934 and 1964 they published eight volumes and several monographs of dance research.
Understanding Musicality
Are you struggling with the music in Argentine Tango? Written for those completely new to musicality, this book clearly answers the basic questions about the music you may be too embarrassed to ask in a class: - What is a beat? - How is it different from "the beat", "being on the beat" and the Comp獺s? - How do you find them in the music? Through clear explanations and examples, Oliver Kent starts you on your journey to a deeper understanding of Argentine Tango's music.Argentine tango lacks music suitable for beginners and those new to musicality, so Oliver begins with simple examples using a metronome to help you learn to find, clap and then walk along to a simple rhythm. He then moves onto using easy-to-follow pop songs to explain more about the beat and the rhythm.He then shifts to focus on Argentine tango's Comp獺s. First explaining exactly what it is and then gradually building up ways to dance socially to it. With his characteristic friendly, relaxed style, he addresses common problems such as how to find and follow the Comp獺s as it moves across different instruments, and what to do when you can't hear it.With this foundation in place, learn how Argentine Tango's rhythms and Comp獺s provide structure to its music. Understanding how they give dancers musical cues, will help you to interpret the music. Rather than getting tied down in complex academic theories, the book focuses on how you can use this new knowledge to improve your social dancing as quickly as possible.To consolidate this, a whole chapter is devoted to walking the reader through how to dance to the Comp獺s in Francisco Canaro's "Poema."Filled with music suggestions, by the time you've finished this book, you'll have the tools to start dancing confidently to the Comp獺s.Get "Understanding Musicality: Al Comp獺s del Coraz籀n" today and unravel the mystery and contusion surrounding Argentine Tango's Comp獺s.
Understanding the Mystery of the Embrace Part 1
"Tango is the embrace."Do you dream of finally having a good tango embrace? Imagine if you, too, could have the kind that magical dances are made from? Most likely, you've only been given scattered pieces of information and left to figure it out yourself. But it seems to be taking a lot longer than you expected!Using clear illustrated instructions, this book guides you step by step through the process: The two most essential elements of the embrace.Shoes!!!!!!!!!!How to adjust and fine-tune your embrace when dancing socially.The Secrets of the Hinge and Double Hinge.Written for dancers of all ages and experiences, Understanding the Mystery of the Embrace Part 1 will give you the confidence and joy that come from having a good embrace. Ready to start enjoying tango dances more? Scroll up, Click on 'Buy Now with 1-Click', and Get Your Copy!
Understanding the Mystery of the Embrace Part 2
"That was magical!"The Embrace can transport your dancing to new levels. Yet, it's often fraught with contradictions. Which way is the "right" way to hold your hand, place your feet, and so on?With clear illustrated instructions, this book shows you step by step how to: Accelerate your learning.Avoid the danger of being Not Even Wrong.Find the invisible Frame within your Embrace.How to dance with more "forceful" partners.Personalize your embrace.Why there are so many apparent contradictions in the way Tango is taught and performed.And more!Written for dancers of all ages and experience, Understanding the Mystery of the Embrace Part 2 will help you take your understanding of the embrace to a new level and avoid the pitfalls along the way. Ready to start enjoying tango dances more? Scroll up, Click on 'Buy Now with 1-Click', and Get Your Copy!
Enjoy Getting the Dances You Want
"I'd give anything to dance with them!"Whether you're a beginner to Argentine Tango, or you've been doing it for years, this book will guide you to get more of the dances you want and enjoy them. It presents a wealth of information and tips on the social intricacies of tango. You too, can savor the experiences tango has to offer: Learn the four types of dancers.Discover the secrets of inviting partners to dance.Feel more relaxed in new and unknown venues.Get more magical dances!No matter your age or level of experience, Enjoy Getting the Dances You Want will help take the confusion out of tango social dancing and put the pleasure back in!Ready to start enjoying the dances you want? Scroll up, Click on 'Buy Now with 1-Click', and Get Your Copy!
Understanding Musicality Din獺mica y Sincopaci籀n
The beauty of Argentine tango musicality lies in its depth and variety. Starting with a clear explanation of double and half-time, this book then explores the five Din獺mica: Stacatto, Legato, Yum, Elastic, and Raindrops. Practical illustrations of how to use weight-changes, rebounds, rock-steps, projections, and walking are included to fast-track you on your way to better musicality in your dancing!
Dance, Architecture and Engineering
This book was born from a year of exchanges of movement ideas generated in cross-practice conversations and workshops with dancers, musicians, architects and engineers. Events took place at key cultural institutions such as the Royal Academy of Arts, London; and The Lowry, Salford, as well as on-site at architectural firms and on the streets of London. The author engages with dance's offer of perspectives on being in place: how the 'ordinary person' is facilitated in experiencing the dance of the city, while also looking at shared cross-practice understandings in and about the body, weight and rhythm. There is a prioritizing of how embodied knowledges across dance, architecture and engineering can contribute to decolonizing the production of place - in particular, how dance and city-making cultures engage with female bodies and non-white bodies in today's era of #MeToo and #BlackLivesMatter. Akinleye concludes in response conversations about ideas raised in the book with John Bingham-Hall, Liz Lerman, Dianne McIntyer and Richard Sennett. The book is a fascinating resource for those drawn to spatial practices from dance to design to construction.
Dances of Belgium
After a beribboned cock has been presented to the Mayor of certain Walloon towns the hapless bird is decapitated and the people dance around it - a strange, ritual ceremony, its analogue known also in the Pyrenees and in Spain. This and many another ancient custom has been kept alive throughout southern and eastern Belgium by the people's great love of dancing - on the place, on platforms and in cafes. In Flanders, too, traditional dancing lives on. Her link with the past is seen, in particular, with the Sword Dances for which she was so famous. History records their performance in the picturesque city of Bruges as far back as 1389, and in the region of Antwerp men still dance 'The Traweiteldans' to the accompaniment of a drum roll.M. Pinon was a folk song expert but was led to study folk dancing through insistent demands from all parts of the country. M. Jamar boasted twenty-five years' study of his native Flanders. Like his collaborator he was a member of the Belgian National Commission on Folklore.Their book contains music and step notations for five dances and there are, in addition, four coloured plates showing the correct costumes to be worn.
Dances of Spain II
'There are other dances in Aragon, ' says the author of this delightful book, 'but when the province is mentioned every Spaniard I have ever met preens himself and remarks, "Ah! La Jota".' There are indeed other dances. Mrs. Armstrong, a widely known authority on Spanish Dances and author of 'Dances of Spain: vol. I', in this series, takes us through the great province of Aragon, from the Pyrenees to the borders of Valencia, to busy Catalonia, and to Valencia itself, where Catalan and southern influences meet, Catalan delicacy softening the rigid grace of Andalusia. Everywhere she shows us the dances of the people: the famed Jota, the Sardana - of which, as she says, much has been written, and a great deal of it nonsense - and less-known dances such as the Dance of the Gypsies from the Valles, to which, oddly enough, no gypsies are admitted.To this most absorbing of travellers' tales has been added a more detailed step-by-step description of four selected dances, with the original music specially arranged for this series. In addition, four beautiful colour plates show traditional Spanish regional costumes.
Dances of Switzerland
This book gives a fascinating account ofSwitzerland's rich heritage of dance and song- a heritage to which all the four races of theSwiss have contributed their varying shares.The clog dances of the Alpine cowherds andtheir well-known yodelling songs, the simple, flowing Valse Frapp矇e of Geneva, and the gayL羹deren Polka have been part of Swiss villagelife for many hundreds of years.These and many other dances, and their placein Swiss folk life, are described by the authorin an introductory essay; in addition, fourtypical dances are selected for more detaileddescription, with music and step-notation, and four delightful colour plates show thecorrect costume for each.Mlle. Witzig was General Secretary of theSwiss National Costume Society and hadalways had a love of the old Swiss customsand folklore; her Society has done muchgood work in the preservation of dance and costumes.
Performance, Dance and Political Economy
This book examines the relation between bodies and political economies at micro and macro levels. It stands in the space between ends and beginnings - some long-desired, such as the end of capitalism and racism, and others long-dreaded, such as the climate catastrophe - and reimagines what the world can be like instead. It offers an original investigation into the relation between performance, dance, and political economy, looking at the points where politics, economics, ethics, and culture intersect. Arising from live conversations and exchanges among the contributors, this book is written in an interdisciplinary and dialogical manner by leading scholars and artists in the fields of Performance Studies, Dance, Political Theory, Economics, and Social Theory: Marc Arthur, Melissa Blanco Borelli, Anita Gonzalez, Alexandrina Hemsley, Jamila Johnson-Small, Elena Loizidou, Tavia Nyong'o, Katerina Paramana, Nina Power, and Usva Seregina. Their critical and creative examinations of the relation between bodies and political economy offer insights for both imagining and materializing a world beyond the present.
Dances of Poland
Poland, birthplace of Polonaise and Mazurka, possesses a passionate love of music and dancing which has survived the ravages of many foreign invaders, from Genghis Khan and his dreaded Tartars down to more recent oppressions.There are many and varied steps to be found in the national dances of Poland, and this book contains the notations and music of four original and exciting dances - including the 'Goralski', a brigand dance from the mountains, and the famous Krakowiak - which are also depicted in striking colour plates showing authentic costumes.Mme. Wolska had had long experience of the dances of Poland, for after being connected with the Polish Ballet Company directed by Nijinsky's sister, she joined the well-known Anglo-Polish Ballet Company as both dancer and ballet mistress.
Rooted Jazz Dance
National Dance Education Organization Ruth Lovell Murray Book AwardUNCG Susan W. Stinson Book Award for Dance EducationStrategies for recovering the Africanist roots of jazz dance in teaching and practiceAn African American art form, jazz dance has an inaccurate historical narrative that often sets Euro-American aesthetics and values at the inception of the jazz dance genealogy. The roots were systemically erased and remain widely marginalized and untaught, and the devaluation of its Africanist origins and lineage has largely gone unchallenged. Decolonizing contemporary jazz dance practice, this book examines the state of jazz dance theory, pedagogy, and choreography in the twenty-first century, recovering and affirming the lifeblood of jazz in Africanist aesthetics and Black American culture. Rooted Jazz Dance brings together jazz dance scholars, practitioners, choreographers, and educators from across the United States and Canada with the goal of changing the course of practice in future generations. Contributors delve into the Africanist elements within jazz dance and discuss the role of Whiteness, including Eurocentric technique and ideology, in marginalizing African American vernacular dance, which has resulted in the prominence of Eurocentric jazz styles and the systemic erosion of the roots. These chapters offer strategies for teaching rooted jazz dance, examples for changing dance curricula, and artist perspectives on choreographing and performing jazz. Above all, they emphasize the importance of centering Africanist and African American principles, aesthetics, and values. Arguing that the history of jazz dance is closely tied to the history of racism in the United States, these essays challenge a century of misappropriation and lean into difficult conversations of reparations for jazz dance. This volume overcomes a major roadblock to racial justice in the dance field by amplifying the people and culture responsible for the jazz language. Contributors: LaTasha Barnes Lindsay Guarino Natasha Powell Carlos R.A. Jones Rubim de Toledo Kim Fuller Wendy Oliver Joanne Baker Karen Clemente Vicki Adams Willis Julie Kerr-Berry Pat Taylor Cory Bowles Melanie George Paula J Peters Patricia Cohen Brandi Coleman Kimberley Cooper Monique Marie Haley Jamie Freeman Cormack Adrienne Hawkins Karen Hubbard Lynnette Young Overby Jessie Metcalf McCullough E. Moncell DurdenPublication of this work made possible by a Sustaining the Humanities through the American Rescue Plan grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Dances of Ireland
On the Eve of May Day, one of the great Celtic feasts, the people, moving in lines, were wont to urge their cattle between two fires that they might be purified and preserved during the coming year. And since nothing dies harder than tradition, it may well be that, long after their significance was forgotten, these ancient ceremonial line-movements developed into the forms of the 'Rinnce Fada' and 'The Hey' still danced in the Ireland of today.For over three centuries after the Tudor wars everything Irish was forbidden, and dancing, like all the other peaceful arts, suffered a decline. Some dances were irretrievably lost, but, largely by the efforts of the Gaelic League, others have been recovered and revived. Step notations and music for several of these, including the famous 'Rinnce Fada', are given here with four coloured plates of costumes.Peadar O'Rafferty, founder of Lambeg Irish Folk Dance Society and for many years instructor to Malone Training School, was a pioneer of the folk-dancing revival in Belfast. His son, Gerald, has frequently acted as adjudicator at Irish musical festivals.
Dances of France I - Brittany and Bourbonnais
Though France is, above all, the land of civilised sophistication, the old popular traditions still live on in the countryside. In their folk dances, as in their music and costume, the different regions present a rich variety. This book begins with the sea girt land of Brittany, where fifteen hundred years ago the men of Cornwall, fleeing before the Saxon invader, founded Cornouaille across the sea. Then it takes us to the Bourbonnais, in the little known heart of France, where langue d'oil and langue d'oc meet. The old dances are accompanied by traditional instruments, such as the Breton bombarde and biniou, and the vielle that is still made in the Bourbonnais by men who learned the craft from their fathers.The authors, both of whom hold high positions in the Paris Museum of Folk Art and Traditions, introduce us to their chosen regions with a general description of the regional costumes, dances and music; four selected dances are then more fully described, with step notations and music, and four plates in vivid colour showing the correct costumes.
Dances of Norway
Descendants of the Vikings, children of Norse legend born beneath the grey twilight of the midnight sun, the people of Norway live in a country of fjords, mountains, lakes and forests, their background here wild and terrible, there still and brooding. Their folk songs and dances are as varied as the scenery of their native land, and as attractive as their colourful national costumes.In this book four dances are fully described with their music and dance steps; and four fine colour plates portray some of the traditional costumes.Klara Semb was the recognised authority on the dances of her country, and was largely instrumental in their revival, for she spent forty years travelling Norway collecting and teaching dances.
Contemporary African Dance Theatre
This book is the first to consider contemporary African dance theatre aesthetics in the context of phenomenology, whiteness, and the gaze. Rather than a discussion of African dance per se, the author challenges hegemonic perceptions of contemporary African dance theatre to interrogate the extent to which white supremacy and privilege weave through capitalist necropolitics and determine our perception of contemporary African dance theatre today. Multiple aesthetic strategies are discussed throughout the book to account for the affective experience of 'un-suturing' that touches white spectatorship and colonial guilt at their core. The critical analysis covers a broad range of dance choreography by artists from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ivory Coast, South Africa, Canada, Europe, and the US as they travel, create, and show their works internationally to global audiences to contest racial divides and white supremacist politics.
Dances of Portugal
To any lover of the dance the exotic rhythms of the Portuguese folk dances must have an irresistible fascination. Mrs. Armstrong, who has lived in Portugal for many years and made a special study of Portuguese dancing, gives in this book a delightful description of the traditional dances, with their intricate figures, sudden leaps and turns in the air, and above all their endless variety and improvisation. Travelling to remote villages, often under conditions of some difficulty, she has gathered her material from sources where traditions are still fresh and living. From the Vira in the north to the complicated waltz figures of the Tagus fisherfolk, she has seen them all, and her enthusiasm stands out on every page.Not only has the author seen and described the dances, but she has also taken detailed notes. This book contains music and step notation for four of the best and most typical of the country dances of Portugal, and four beautiful colour-plates show the costumes appropriate to each.
Dances of Bulgaria
Throughout Bulgaria at a variety of occasions, festive, religious, or social, the people will gather to join in their national Horo, a gay dance with countless variations of music and step, in a circular or chain formation for any number of dancers. The dancing of Horos is enjoyed by everyone, from the soldiers in barracks to the workers in harvest fields, and in days gone by many trades had their own version of the dance. Then there are the Sheep's Dance, 'Violet, Little Violet' and the Rachenitsa, with its accompanying song.In this book, illustrated by four colour plates, are detailed descriptions of four typical peasant dances with the correct dance steps and music.Mme Raina Katsarova was head of the Folk Dance and Music department of the Ethnographical Museum in Sofia; and herself collected more than 6,000 Bulgarian folk songs and 200 dances.
Being a Ballerina
Finalist, the Arts Club of Washington Marfield PrizeA look inside a dancer's world Inspiring, revealing, and deeply relatable, Being a Ballerina is a firsthand look at the realities of life as a professional ballet dancer. Through episodes from her own career, Gavin Larsen describes the forces that drive a person to study dance; the daily balance that dancers navigate between hardship and joy; and the dancer's continual quest to discover who they are as a person and as an artist.	Starting with her arrival as a young beginner at a class too advanced for her, Larsen tells how the embarrassing mistake ended up helping her learn quickly and advance rapidly. In other stories of her early teachers, training, and auditions, she explains how she gradually came to understand and achieve what she and her body were capable of.	Larsen then re-creates scenes from her experiences in dance companies, from unglamorous roles to exhilarating performances. Working as a ballerina was shocking and scary at first, she says, recalling unexpected injuries, leaps of faith, and her constant struggle to operate at the level she wanted--but full of enormously rewarding moments. Larsen also reflects candidly on her difficult decision to retire at age 35.	An ideal read for aspiring dancers, Larsen's memoir will also delight experienced dance professionals and fascinate anyone who wonders what it takes to live a life dedicated to the perfection of the art form.
Midnight at the Crossroads
Belly dance and its music arise from an Eastern ethos of feeling, improvisation, and joy. However, it's hard for Western dancers to discover these principles--and even harder to embody them, steeped as we are in an aesthetic of appearance, choreography, and perfectionism.All arts grow and change, that's part of their nature. But in this case, there are surprising advantages to embracing the Eastern way, including brain health, trauma healing, and a connection to the Divine.Join Alia Thabit, an Arab-American dancer with forty-five years of experience, as she reveals the secret soul of the dance--and how to make it your own. Find resources and learn more at BellyDanceSoul.com
Perspectives in Motion
Focusing on visual approaches to performance in global cultural contexts, Perspectives in Motion explores the work of Adrienne L. Kaeppler, a pioneering researcher who has made a number of interdisciplinary contributions over five decades to dance and performance studies. Through a diverse range of case studies from Oceania, Asia, and Europe, and interdisciplinary approaches, this edited collection offers new critical and ethnographic frameworks for understanding and experiencing practices of music and dance across the globe.
Dances of Denmark
'A circle whose centre is the devil himself, and whose participants are dancing towardseternal death.' Thus did a medieval Danishpriest describe the Ring Dance, and readersof Hans Andersen will recognise this priestlypuritanism in the tale of the Red Shoes. A17th century Bishop of Funen, however, hadmore liberal views. Having married his twosons at a double wedding, he 'saw no harmin himself dancing a turn with each of thebrides'. The natural light-heartedness of theDane is never long suppressed, and todaythere is a rich and living tradition of folkdance, costume and music.Mr. Jeppessen was the chairman of theDanish Association for the Encouragementof Folk Dancing, and Mr. Lorenzen was awell-known folklorist who modestly describeshis wide researches as 'a hobby'. As in theother books of the series, they have chosenfour dances for more detailed description, and the book is illustrated with four costumeplates in full colour.
